Tax and Energy
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Crawford School of Public Policy TTPI Tax and Transfer Policy Institute Tax and energy TTPI – Policy Brief 2/2020 May 2020 Maria Sandoval-Guzman PhD Candidate Curtin University Miranda Stewart Professor, University of Melbourne Fellow, Tax and Transfer Policy Institute Australian National University Tax and Transfer Policy Institute Crawford School of Public Policy College of Asia and the Pacific +61 2 6125 9318 [email protected] The Australian National University Canberra ACT 0200 Australia www.anu.edu.au CRICOS Provider No. 00120C * This Policy Brief is based on work commissioned by the Australian Conservation Foundation (ACF). The work is independent research and the options and recommendations do not necessarily reflect the views of the ACF. THE AUSTRALIAN NATIONAL UNIVERSITY Policy Brief - Tax and Energy This policy brief discusses tax and the or discourage wasteful or sustainable production and consumption of energy. The behaviour. Tax rules may distort price brief outlines elements in the Australian tax signals and contribute to the externalisation system that may affect incentives for of costs, which are ultimately borne by the production of polluting or non-renewable environment and society. energy sources (such as coal, oil and gas), Under current policy settings, rather than clean, or renewable, energy environmental taxes in Australia are borne sources. The brief then discusses the largely by households. Environmental taxes elements of the tax system that may affect include, most importantly, fuel excise on the consumption of energy, especially the crude oil and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), incentives or disincentives for households which raised $18.4 billion in 2016-17; stamp and businesses for excessive energy duty on vehicle registration and other motor consumption and that may discourage vehicle taxes raising $10.3 billion in 2016- transition to the consumption of renewable 17; renewable energy certificates and the energy. luxury car tax. Figure 1 shows that in all The tax system is a powerful driver of years, from 2010-11, households bore Australia’s economy. Taxation can change between 24% to 35% of these taxes, while the price of a good or service making it more agriculture, mining, manufacturing and the or less financially attractive to consumers electricity sectors bore lower proportions. and investors. It can shift a market to prefer one technology or another especially if they are directly substitutable. It can encourage Figure 1. Environmentally-related taxes paid by industry and households, energy taxes, share of total, 2010-11 to 2016-17 (a) 40 35 30 25 20 Percent 15 10 5 0 Agriculture, Mining Manufacturing Electricity, gas, Transport, Other industries Households forestry and water and waste postal and fishing services warehousing 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 2014-15 2015-16 2016-17 Own construction. Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics, Australian Environmental-Economic Accounts 2019. (a) Includes Excise on Crude oil and LPG, Carbon pricing mechanism, Renewable energy certificates, Energy Savings Scheme, Greenhouse Gas Reduction Scheme, The Queensland Gas Scheme, The Retailer Energy Efficiency Scheme and Victorian Energy Efficiency Target scheme. TTPI Policy Brief 2/2020 2 Policy Brief - Tax and Energy Figure 1 also shows the effect of the Carbon down the cost of production and Pricing Scheme during 2012-13 and 2013- consumption of renewable energy sources 14 in helping to shift some of the tax burden for households and businesses, in a way from households towards industry, that is efficient, equitable and sustainable. particularly electricity, manufacturing and mining. SUMMARY OF POLICY OPTIONS Resistance to energy transition out of coal, Policy option 1. Introduce accelerated mining and gas into renewable sources is depreciation or investment allowance to often based on arguments in support of support upgrade of plant and equipment to sectoral employment. Government assets that meet specified energy efficiency expenditure could be redirected away from goals. tax subsidies for fossil fuels, such as accelerated depreciation for polluting heavy Policy option 2. Wind back accelerated vehicles or equipment, or fuel subsidies, depreciation for fuel-consuming and towards transitional job support, retraining producing heavy equipment, and reduce schemes and strengthened regional immediate capital deductions for mining and industries in renewables. This can be a use of fossil fuels. successful, people-focused mechanism in Policy option 3. Strengthen concessional Australia’s transition towards greener finance for clean technologies. energy production, with the International Renewable Energy Agency (2020) Policy option 4. Explore an income tax identifying the potential for 220,000 new deduction or offset to incentivise home jobs to be created in Oceania in the next owners or businesses to invest in three decades. This transition will also help equipment that utilises renewable energy or economic resilience. Due to COVID-19, the is more energy efficient. International Energy Agency (2020) finds Policy option 5. Explore an income tax that energy demand has contracted by 6%, deduction or offset to incentivise landlords the largest reduction in 70 years in to upgrade to renewable-energy based or percentage and the largest ever in absolute energy efficient equipment. terms, especially affecting oil, coal, gas and nuclear energy; only renewables posted Policy option 6. Explore a stamp duty growth in demand and this is expected to concession for homes with higher energy increase further. The Australian Energy efficiency (star ratings). Market Operator (2020) estimates that the Policy option 7. Explore federal or State National Energy Market could be operated tax concession for equipment used to securely with 75% of energy originating charge electric vehicles. from wind and solar by 2025. Policy option 8. Explore federal or State Policy options addressing tax and energy tax concession for use of public transport should be addressed to both production and and remove income tax and Fringe Benefits consumption. This brief presents some Tax concessions for cars. policy options as a dual strategy, seeking to change pricing and incentives towards more Policy option 9. Increase GST on non- neutral or more environmentally aware tax essential personal air travel and goals for both producers and consumers. A international air and sea freight emissions key issue is whether tax reform might bring and waste. TTPI Policy Brief 2/2020 3 Policy Brief - Tax and Energy TAX AND ENERGY PRODUCTION technology features of capital plant and equipment. Taxpayers may follow the More than 75% of electricity generation in Commissioner’s schedule of depreciation Australia is produced from coal and gas. rates or may choose to depreciate an asset Electricity production from renewable by estimating its effective life as used in that sources in Australia lags significantly business. These income tax rules apply to behind other countries. Although estimates energy producers, as for other businesses. vary, just between 19% (in 2018, Australian Government) to 24% (in 2019, Clean Small businesses are eligible for an ‘instant Energy Council) of the country’s electricity asset write-off’ which is an immediate supply comes from renewable energy deduction for plant and equipment. This is a sources including wind, solar and generous concession which is not targeted hydropower. In contrast, renewable sources based on energy-reduction or pollution account for close to 40% of electricity prevention goals. It is utilised by many production in Germany and New Zealand businesses to purchase vehicles (four out of and 99% in Norway. This is partly a result of five examples on the ATO website refer to Australia’s geography and economy but is purchase of a motor vehicle). These also a consequence of disincentives in vehicles are mostly fossil-fuel based. economy policy settings, including the tax During the Federal election campaign the system. Australian Labor Party (ALP) proposed to Energy production: Tax depreciation expand accelerated depreciation of plant, and expense deductions equipment and intangibles in its ‘Australian Investment Guarantee’, and to extend Australia’s income tax law is neutral as eligibility to businesses of any size. This between polluting or renewable energy permitted a deduction for 20% of the capital production. The income tax law provides cost of new assets exceeding a cost of general rules for deductions for business $20,000, in the first year of operation. There expenses under Section 8-1 and Section is no targeting towards energy-reduction or 40-730 of the Income Tax Assessment Act pollution prevention assets. Again, this 1997 (ITAA 1997). The income tax law would likely be used by many businesses contains a uniform capital allowance system for purchase of vehicles powered by fossil which applies general depreciation fuels. The estimated fiscal cost of this (deductions) for the cost assets and other measure is about $1.8 billion each year. capital expenditure incurred by businesses or income-producing activity (such as rental There are no special deductions for capital real estate). There are no specific income expenditure on structural improvements or tax rules for energy production in Australia, alterations to a building to use less energy whether from fossil fuels or renewable or to reduce pollution; general rules for sources. building depreciation may apply (Division 43 of ITAA97). There are also no special tax